Blog #13

Midgely's section, The Mixed Community, was a very interesting and easy-to-read excerpt; one of my favorites so far. In this reading, Midgely used examples to show the holes within the natural principle of the "species barrier." Proving that the species barrier is not an excuse for absolute dismissal of animals and their feelings, but is "...rather like one of those tall wire fences whose impressiveness is confined to their upper reaches...The young of Homo sapiens, like those of other species present, scurry through it all the time" (Midgley, 118).
Midgely starts her argument by showing that all human communities do not exist just by themselves, but usually incorporate various species within their homes, communities, and countries. This ability of humans to domesticate animals relies on the fact that both the human and their animal (s) are social beings-by interacting with animals on a personal level humans are able to achieve this. As Midgely then states, this must mean that humans are able to understand some of the various social cues of animals to domesticate and exploit them - pointing to the fact that that must mean that animals are sentient beings.
Lastly, Midgely looks at children, adults, and their relationships with animals. Midgley shows how children of all species tend to explore other species' young. Midgley attributes this to the child's "...capacity for widely extended sympathy, for social horizons not limited to one's familiar group" (Midgley, 120). She then points out an idea held by many of the civilized world today -that this playfulness, compassion, and exploration must be shelved and put away as one gets older and becomes more "adult." Midgley laments this idea, stating, '"Increasing callousness is, on the whole, rather a bad sign...Children and 'primitives' need not always be wrong"' (Midgley, 122). Instead, she calls for an increasing awareness of the "child within" and the need to remember many of the central ideas of that time to help adults retain the imagination and compassion that once made life so beautiful (including a love and compassion for animals).